News Now

MADISON, Wis. (2/6/14)--Power outages and road closures are widespread after a one-two punch of winter storms in the Midwest and Northeast, causing some credit unions to close.

Nearly 10 inches of snow had fallen in the Albany, N.Y., region Wednesday. This is the view from the Credit Union Association of New York's offices in Albany.

In New York, credit unions have closed branches or altered operating hours, according to Ron McLean, senior vice president, Credit Union Association of New York.

Ice and snow made travel treacherous, and New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo closed Interstate 84 between the Connecticut and Pennsylvania borders to traffic both ways for about six hours Wednesday. Cuomo also declared a state of emergency and urged people to stay off the roads (
Times Union
Feb. 5).

"Credit unions located in this area are certainly significantly impacted," McLean told
News Now
.

In Pennsylvania, power outages were a grave concern. At the height of the storm, more than 623,000 customers were without power in the Philadelphia region. Peco, the power utility, said it was the second-worst storm in company history and that restoring power could take until the weekend (
Philly.com
Feb. 5).

The Pennsylvania Credit Union Association's Harrisburg offices look out over the frozen and snow-covered Susquehanna River.

"There are quite a number of areas that are really impacted by power outages," said Diane Powell, director of communications, Pennsylvania Credit Union Association. "I talked with a staff person from a credit union in this area who was working, but had no power at their residence," she told
News Now
.

People First FCU, Allentown, was closed Monday due to snow and closed early Wednesday, according to its Facebook page.

Credit union leagues in Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey and Rhode Island operated in business continuity mode Wednesday. Boston received 9.7 inches of snow, and more than 61,000 power outages were reported in New Jersey (
weather.com
Feb. 5).

In the Midwest, subzero temperatures are following Tuesday's snowfall, which dumped a record-setting 7.5 inches of snow at the Kansas City International Airport (
Kansas City Star
Feb. 5).

The Kansas Credit Union Association was open Wednesday, as were most of the state's credit unions, according to Susan Dyer, communications director.